0. Please make sure you are using the latest version before filing a bug report. Reports should include as much context as possible to help me reproduce the issue and ideally also a script extender log. See the "Create Console" option in BG3 Mod Manager to make sure the script extender window is shown so that you can grab the information you need. Vague complaints without supporting evidence or questions already addressed in the FAQ below are likely to be ignored. Also please use English when communicating with me.
1. If you close the character creation screen when making a Custom Companion you will return to the main menu, lose any unsaved progress, and may find your game in an inconsistent state until you restart it. This is hard coded game behavior and I cannot change it. DO NOT TAUNT HAPPY FUN BALL. DO NOT CLOSE THE CHARACTER CREATION SCREEN.
2. Creating a Custom Companion will disruptively open the character creation screen for everyone in multiplayer. This is also beyond my ability to change. When using this mod in multiplayer you are advised to warn your friends before creating a Companion. Those players who are not creating a Companion should just click through without changing anything.
3. Using this mod along with Show Approval Ratings in Dialogue Choices (and possibly other similar mods) will cause text like "[Gale 1]" to be appended to some of the dialogue lines when talking to a Custom Companion, as if those lines were going to affect a vanilla follower's approval. This is a cosmetic issue only, caused by me recycling vanilla dialogue lines which then get edited by the other mod, and will not actually modify anyone's approval.
4. Dragonborn Companions may have animation problems in dialogue. This is an underlying game issue not in my power to fix, and probably explains why there are no Dragonborn hirelings.
5. It has been reported that using Mordenkainen's Fortuitous Friend Finder can somehow register as a total party kill for the purposes of Honor Mode. I have no idea why this would be, but I don't play Honor Mode and this mod was not made with it in mind, so you are advised to be careful.
6. Custom Companions may sometimes use Dark Urge voice barks when attached to a Dark Urge player character. There is currently no known workaround for this issue.
Q: Does the version on mod.io replace this one? A: Absolutely not. It is a cut down alternative for people who can't or won't use the Script Extender. This version offers additional functionality such as NPC duplication.
Q: I can't find the items or spells. How do I use this? A: You probably didn't install the Script Extender properly. Go back and check that it is working. If you are sure that it is working, post a bug report with a full Script Extender log.
Q: What version of the game and script extender are supported? A: As of writing, game patch 8 and script extender v24. While I have not gone out of my way to remove compatibility with previous game versions, I only run and test with patch 8 and offer no support for patch 7 and earlier.
Q: Can I make [insert favorite mod race here] and/or [insert favorite mod class here] Companions? A: This mod uses the same character creation interface as creating a player character, so any combination of race/class including modded ones should work. Some may require Improved UI, so check that you have it installed and up to date. If you find something which doesn't work in terms of race/class mods then it's almost certainly going to need to be addressed by their creator. This mod doesn't do anything on the user interface side of things.
Q: Can I duplicate [insert favorite character here] ? A: There are no restrictions on what you can target with the duplication spell/item, but the mod was made with "standard" humanoid characters in mind; think Lakrissa and Rolan, not the Spider Matriarch or Ketheric Thorm. When it comes to "non-standard" things such as monsters, animals, mecha, boss enemies, etc you may run into missing animations and cases where unique special abilities do not copy over or are non-functional. Please do not be offended if I am not really interested in individually fixing issues with "non-standard" entities. Priority will be given to issues which affect "standard" humanoids or are game breaking.
Q: Is this compatible with [insert favorite mod here] ? A: I run a relatively low-mod setup, mostly just cosmetic things like hair and outfits, so I probably don't know. Please try for yourself and tell me about incompatible mods. I will attempt to improve compatibility where possible in response to reports. See the known issues above for any specific known conflicts.
Q: Can I uninstall this mid-playthrough? A: No, this mod is not safe to remove mid-playthrough. You are advised to take a clean save before evaluating the mod so that you can revert if you decide you do not wish to use it.
Q: Can you unbind the wand and mirror? They offend my sense of inventory tidiness. A: Since v2.0.2.0 you can do this via the configuration file (see below) but you are on your own if you do so. I will not help you get back items lost by unbinding them.
Q: I am a mod maker. How can I recognise characters created by your mod? A: Custom Companions, both created and duplicated, all carry the 7deac637-156c-435a-9059-a0dcc5d0ecf1 tag.
Q: Does this mod change the party size limit? A: Yes and no. You may have an unlimited number of custom companions, but when you have 3 of them the base game companions will regard your party as full. If you want a fully unlocked party size mod, I recommend Party Limit Begone (SE version). Certain cutscenes may have issues with an oversized party. Before reporting such issues as being the fault of my mod, please check if you can reproduce the problem with a normal size party.
Q: Can I use this in multiplayer? A: Yes, but I don't play multiplayer myself and my testing is limited to running two copies of the game on my own computer. Feedback regarding how it does or doesn't perform in a genuine networked environment is welcome!
Q: Can you add more dialogue? A: No. Dialogue in this game is very hard to do (in my opinion) and I'm a scripting guy, not a cinematographer.
Q: Is this the same as [insert other popular mod here] ? A: I made this mod to scratch a personal itch which other mods weren't reaching, and I felt pleased with the result so I thought I'd share it with the community. I'm not looking to get into a popularity contest and if you already have another mod which works for you then you won't need this one.
Q: I dismissed my companion! Can I get them back? A: No. Dismissed companions are gone for good. Next time send them to your camp instead of to oblivion. ;)
Note that this is an advanced feature. If you are not comfortable locating and editing this kind of file then leave it alone. The default settings should be fine for most players!
The file will be created the first time you run the game with v2.0.2.0 or higher of the mod installed. It can then be found at:
"%LOCALAPPDATA%\Larian Studios\Baldur's Gate 3\Script Extender\CustomCompanions.json" The syntax of the file must be preserved entirely. Change only the words true and false, nothing else.
The following options are accepted:
CatchupXP - default: true - Enables the XP catch up mechanism where your Companions will level up when you do. If you disable this they will almost certainly start to lag behind.
CombatDuplication - default: false - Removes the out-of-combat restriction from the duplication spell, replacing the CC_CombatClone plugin. This feature is not well tested and you are not advised to enable it unless you have a particular great need for it.
ImmersiveEpilogue - default: true - Enables your Companions to grab a drink and mingle at Withers' gathering. Disable it if you want to retain control of your Companions during the epilogue. Only affects Custom Companions, does nothing to base game characters or characters from other mods.
StrictEndgame - default: true - Removes the wand, mirror, all Companion related spells, and prevents Companions from being dismissed after passing the point-of-no-return when entering the Morphic Pool. This replicates vanilla game behavior where your party is supposed to be fixed after this point. Disabling this will restore behavior from versions 2.2.0.4 and earlier. Be aware that dismissing a Companion to camp after the point-of-no-return means you can't get them back as there is no access to camp anymore.
UnbindItems - default: false - Turn this on to remove the 'bound' effect from the wand and mirror, allowing them to be moved out of your character's inventory. You are strongly advised against doing this and if you manage to lose the items as a result there is no way to get them back. You have been warned!
I am certain this is a me problem, but I'm leaving this here in case someone has seen and solved this issue. The one thing I know is it isn't my PC. I literally bought a 5090 laptop to be sure it wasn't my old 30 series laptop. I use this mod, party limit begone and MANY more mods. On the 30 series and the 5090 Starting in the creche when trying to use the item Lae'zel says helps the game crashes unless I drop my party size to 6. With my old PC I'd finish the creche that way and in other areas where this happens - Last Light Inn, The tower, and maybe another spot, I'd drop the party size down again. By act 3 I'm down to a small party everywhere. Has anyone seen and solved this? this game is my main hobby right now (pathetic? maybe) hoping against hope someone has seen this
OK - I read the known issues and see that this is simply known. Has anyone solved it?
hello! idk if this problem has been asked before already but i just downloaded this mod to an already existing save file ( im only on act 1, entering the camp for the first time) and the custom companion hairs miss the hair textures and are just bare plane 3d strips. it happens with both the default vanilla hairs and also custom hairs do i need to start a new game for it to show up normally? edit: started a new game to check and now my custom creation has turned to the custom hireling creation. so i cant create a new character. and the hair issue is still there :( another edit for people who might have a similar problem: i realized this one custom head bundle wasnt working properly (myky's heads mod) so i installed it correctly this time and now the hairs look normal and im able to make a custom hireling in my already existing save file!
Hi! I just came back to the game hoping to finaly finish the story line. I cannot use my companions anymore. They show up at the camp, but cannot select them. This message shows on them "this was used by previous versions of companions and is retained for compatibility only. Do not select."
Is there any posibility to recover them? Or their items at least, since I could create them from scratch again.
What do you mean by came back to the game? Did you reload a save taken with an older version of the mod?
First of all are both your game and the mod fully up to date? I'm afraid I don't offer any support for old versions of the mod or versions of the game prior to patch 8.
Assuming everything is fully updated, you should try to post a script extender log which might reveal any errors loading your save.
mate, as someone who is only just getting into modding, I've unpacked your mod and had a look at all the work that you've put into creating this - just wow! It seems like absolute wizardry to me (and genuinely inspirational).
I was thinking of trying to create an 'alter-ego' type mod piggy-backing off your own mod but I actually don't even know what to copy because it is all so far beyond me. The idea was to design a dummy character in CC that is then tied to a spell (i.e. like an extra option in the disguise self spell) that would allow players to disguise themselves as the dummy character from CC. Would allow for some pretty interesting RP stuff.
I am sure you're inundated with questions etc but I would love to pick your brain about where to start. I've been using Norbytes BG3 search engine and learned a lot about character's appearance but the whole CC thing is very intimidating to me!
I would make an absolutely terrible teacher in the general "teach me how to mod" sense, but if you have any specific questions about why I did something a certain way in the code then feel free to shoot me a DM and I'll do my best to answer, assuming I remember.
You might also want to keep a lookout for Moonglasses being updated for patch 8 and consider making your mod with native Osiris code in the toolkit rather than with the script extender. There was no toolkit when this I first made this mod, but looking back I see that I re-invented the wheel or did things the hard way a bunch of times compared to how it would have been in Osiris.
Thanks mate that's actually very helpful feedback already. I know your mod.io version doesn't use script extender -would I be better off looking into that one for how things are done?
It depends how quickly you want to get started, I guess. Moonglasses still hasn't been released for patch 8, unless you want to use a beta version which you can only get from the author's Discord.
You are welcome to look inside Custom Companions Lite as well for ideas though. Just credit me if you actually copy any of my code.
1150 comments
0. Please make sure you are using the latest version before filing a bug report. Reports should include as much context as possible to help me reproduce the issue and ideally also a script extender log. See the "Create Console" option in BG3 Mod Manager to make sure the script extender window is shown so that you can grab the information you need. Vague complaints without supporting evidence or questions already addressed in the FAQ below are likely to be ignored. Also please use English when communicating with me.
1. If you close the character creation screen when making a Custom Companion you will return to the main menu, lose any unsaved progress, and may find your game in an inconsistent state until you restart it. This is hard coded game behavior and I cannot change it.
DO NOT TAUNT HAPPY FUN BALL.DO NOT CLOSE THE CHARACTER CREATION SCREEN.2. Creating a Custom Companion will disruptively open the character creation screen for everyone in multiplayer. This is also beyond my ability to change. When using this mod in multiplayer you are advised to warn your friends before creating a Companion. Those players who are not creating a Companion should just click through without changing anything.
3. Using this mod along with Show Approval Ratings in Dialogue Choices (and possibly other similar mods) will cause text like "[Gale 1]" to be appended to some of the dialogue lines when talking to a Custom Companion, as if those lines were going to affect a vanilla follower's approval. This is a cosmetic issue only, caused by me recycling vanilla dialogue lines which then get edited by the other mod, and will not actually modify anyone's approval.
4. Dragonborn Companions may have animation problems in dialogue. This is an underlying game issue not in my power to fix, and probably explains why there are no Dragonborn hirelings.
5. It has been reported that using Mordenkainen's Fortuitous Friend Finder can somehow register as a total party kill for the purposes of Honor Mode. I have no idea why this would be, but I don't play Honor Mode and this mod was not made with it in mind, so you are advised to be careful.
6. Custom Companions may sometimes use Dark Urge voice barks when attached to a Dark Urge player character. There is currently no known workaround for this issue.
Q: Does the version on mod.io replace this one?
A: Absolutely not. It is a cut down alternative for people who can't or won't use the Script Extender. This version offers additional functionality such as NPC duplication.
Q: I can't find the items or spells. How do I use this?
A: You probably didn't install the Script Extender properly. Go back and check that it is working. If you are sure that it is working, post a bug report with a full Script Extender log.
Q: What version of the game and script extender are supported?
A: As of writing, game patch 8 and script extender v24. While I have not gone out of my way to remove compatibility with previous game versions, I only run and test with patch 8 and offer no support for patch 7 and earlier.
Q: Can I make [insert favorite mod race here] and/or [insert favorite mod class here] Companions?
A: This mod uses the same character creation interface as creating a player character, so any combination of race/class including modded ones should work.
Some may require Improved UI, so check that you have it installed and up to date.If you find something which doesn't work in terms of race/class mods then it's almost certainly going to need to be addressed by their creator. This mod doesn't do anything on the user interface side of things.Q: Can I duplicate [insert favorite character here] ?
A: There are no restrictions on what you can target with the duplication spell/item, but the mod was made with "standard" humanoid characters in mind; think Lakrissa and Rolan, not the Spider Matriarch or Ketheric Thorm. When it comes to "non-standard" things such as monsters, animals, mecha, boss enemies, etc you may run into missing animations and cases where unique special abilities do not copy over or are non-functional. Please do not be offended if I am not really interested in individually fixing issues with "non-standard" entities. Priority will be given to issues which affect "standard" humanoids or are game breaking.
Q: Is this compatible with [insert favorite mod here] ?
A: I run a relatively low-mod setup, mostly just cosmetic things like hair and outfits, so I probably don't know. Please try for yourself and tell me about incompatible mods. I will attempt to improve compatibility where possible in response to reports. See the known issues above for any specific known conflicts.
Q: Can I uninstall this mid-playthrough?
A: No, this mod is not safe to remove mid-playthrough. You are advised to take a clean save before evaluating the mod so that you can revert if you decide you do not wish to use it.
Q: Can you unbind the wand and mirror? They offend my sense of inventory tidiness.
A: Since v2.0.2.0 you can do this via the configuration file (see below) but you are on your own if you do so. I will not help you get back items lost by unbinding them.
Q: I am a mod maker. How can I recognise characters created by your mod?
A: Custom Companions, both created and duplicated, all carry the 7deac637-156c-435a-9059-a0dcc5d0ecf1 tag.
Q: Does this mod change the party size limit?
A: Yes and no. You may have an unlimited number of custom companions, but when you have 3 of them the base game companions will regard your party as full. If you want a fully unlocked party size mod, I recommend Party Limit Begone (SE version). Certain cutscenes may have issues with an oversized party. Before reporting such issues as being the fault of my mod, please check if you can reproduce the problem with a normal size party.
Q: Can I use this in multiplayer?
A: Yes, but I don't play multiplayer myself and my testing is limited to running two copies of the game on my own computer. Feedback regarding how it does or doesn't perform in a genuine networked environment is welcome!
Q: Can you add more dialogue?
A: No. Dialogue in this game is very hard to do (in my opinion) and I'm a scripting guy, not a cinematographer.
Q: Is this the same as [insert other popular mod here] ?
A: I made this mod to scratch a personal itch which other mods weren't reaching, and I felt pleased with the result so I thought I'd share it with the community. I'm not looking to get into a popularity contest and if you already have another mod which works for you then you won't need this one.
Q: I dismissed my companion! Can I get them back?
A: No. Dismissed companions are gone for good. Next time send them to your camp instead of to oblivion. ;)
Note that this is an advanced feature. If you are not comfortable locating and editing this kind of file then leave it alone. The default settings should be fine for most players!
The file will be created the first time you run the game with v2.0.2.0 or higher of the mod installed. It can then be found at:
"%LOCALAPPDATA%\Larian Studios\Baldur's Gate 3\Script Extender\CustomCompanions.json"The syntax of the file must be preserved entirely. Change only the words true and false, nothing else.
The following options are accepted:
OK - I read the known issues and see that this is simply known. Has anyone solved it?
I probably did sth wrong or have conflicting mods as this used to work for me prior to patch 8
Maybe someone here had the same issue and can help me.
To fix you need to close your game completely and restart it.
Otherwise it's probably another mod doing it as this mod does not affect the character creation when the game is freshly started.
edit: started a new game to check and now my custom creation has turned to the custom hireling creation. so i cant create a new character. and the hair issue is still there :(
another edit for people who might have a similar problem: i realized this one custom head bundle wasnt working properly (myky's heads mod) so i installed it correctly this time and now the hairs look normal and im able to make a custom hireling in my already existing save file!
Is there any posibility to recover them? Or their items at least, since I could create them from scratch again.
Thank you for creating this amazing mod!
First of all are both your game and the mod fully up to date? I'm afraid I don't offer any support for old versions of the mod or versions of the game prior to patch 8.
Assuming everything is fully updated, you should try to post a script extender log which might reveal any errors loading your save.
That said I haven't really tested it in a while as I tend not to run oversized parties anymore.
I was thinking of trying to create an 'alter-ego' type mod piggy-backing off your own mod but I actually don't even know what to copy because it is all so far beyond me. The idea was to design a dummy character in CC that is then tied to a spell (i.e. like an extra option in the disguise self spell) that would allow players to disguise themselves as the dummy character from CC. Would allow for some pretty interesting RP stuff.
I am sure you're inundated with questions etc but I would love to pick your brain about where to start. I've been using Norbytes BG3 search engine and learned a lot about character's appearance but the whole CC thing is very intimidating to me!
You might also want to keep a lookout for Moonglasses being updated for patch 8 and consider making your mod with native Osiris code in the toolkit rather than with the script extender. There was no toolkit when this I first made this mod, but looking back I see that I re-invented the wheel or did things the hard way a bunch of times compared to how it would have been in Osiris.
You are welcome to look inside Custom Companions Lite as well for ideas though. Just credit me if you actually copy any of my code.